Every summer, our NYC team invites students to take part in a 10-week internship program providing them with hands-on experiences of the entire transaction lifecycle from pitches to research to client management. The Equiteq team also put on training sessions on key skills required in a career in investment banking such as financial modeling and presentation skills.
We’d like to say a huge thank you to our 2022 interns Carson Cohen, Charlie Kahn, Kara Swain and Mark Ku.
In this blog, they reflect on their intern experiences:
Q: Why did you choose the Equiteq Intern Programme?
Carson: I chose the Equiteq intern program in order to explore my interests at the crossroads of finance and technology. I wanted to position myself at a firm that had a strong ‘team’ feeling and work in a collaborative environment where I would feel my value in the day-to-day of the firm.
Mark: I chose Equiteq because of its people and culture. Everyone I’ve interacted with on the team was genuine and supportive throughout the recruiting process and it made a meaningful impact on me during the recruiting process.
Charlie: I chose the Equiteq internship program for a few reasons. The first is that I thought they operated in a very exciting emerging space, and I wanted to learn more about the Knowledge Economy. Not only did I learn a lot about this niche sector, but my interest has grown larger in remaining in this space. I also wanted experience in the M&A industry so that I could learn essential skills such as financial analysis, client management, and industry expertise. The information I have soaked up over the summer has been invaluable to my progression
Q: What are your key learnings from the past 10 weeks?
Kara: I’ve learned how the M&A process works from start to finish, developed my technical skills, and been able to learn from some of the brightest minds in the business. It’s truly been an incredible learning experience, and I’m so glad Equiteq’s mentorship model gives us the guidance we need to succeed.
Q: What is your most memorable moment?
Carson: My most memorable moment during the summer internship was getting to present my research project on a specific target ecosystem within Equiteq’s sector focus. Presenting my findings brought together my industry research, banking knowledge, and presentation skills. The result was not only the proof I could put together a comprehensive ecosystem overview, but a real work product Equiteq could leverage going forward.
Kara: Our office socials! From ping pong to an Irish pub, this office definitely knows how to have fun.
Q: Would you recommend the program to a friend?
Mark: I definitely would! It was the best intern experience I’ve had so far and the one that taught me the most. Being at a middle market bank with a lot of deal flow caused me to do a lot of meaningful work that I wouldn’t have had the opportunity of doing at a larger bank.
Kara: 100%! I’ve had a great time and learned so many things on the job. It is a great way to get a glimpse of investment banking, explore New York City, and work with some truly incredible people. As an intern, you’ll attend training sessions on financial modeling, research, and presentation skills, and have the opportunity to attend meetings with leading buyers in the Knowledge Economy. It’s a fast-paced environment, but I could not recommend Equiteq’s internship program enough.
Charlie: I would definitely recommend this program to a friend. The team is all highly motivated and hard-working, but more importantly extremely supportive and quick to help you grow and learn. The program itself is a fantastic mix of education – both from training and from individual lessons taught by the team – and real-time experience in which you learn what it means to work in the M&A industry, to get a feel for how a company in a niche segment differentiates itself, and to contribute to the overall success of the firm.
Q: And finally, in three words, how would you describe your experience?
Mark: Supportive, Genuine, Intense
Carson: Growth-oriented, Collaborative, Educational
Charlie: I would describe my experience as educational, hands-on, and enjoyable. I felt as if I made meaningful contributions daily to my team’s projects, and they trusted me with significant work to produce meaningful content. I loved every minute of the internship, and while we were undoubtedly hard at work, we still made time to talk to each other and become close over the course of 10 weeks. I also felt like the internship was a perfect balance of educational information and hands-on experience. I got to apply what I learned in real-time and see the results first-hand.
If you are interested in Equiteq's NYC Summer Internship Program 2023, send your CV and cover letter to Sarah Tucker, HR Director: careers@equiteq.com.